New Delhi: Ahead of the Supreme Court’s hearing on a batch of petitions challenging the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has moved a fresh application urging the Apex Court to restrain the Election Commission of India (ECI) from deleting the name of any voter during the ongoing SIR exercise in the state.
Alleging a grave risk of large-scale disenfranchisement in West Bengal, CM Mamata contended that the Election Commission has issued circulars to voters even for minor or technical discrepancies in their applications, thereby creating an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty among the electorate.
Seeking urgent interim directions against the poll body, she has requested the Supreme Court to ensure that no name is removed from the 2022 voter list and that no voter is deprived of the right to vote while the matter remains under judicial consideration.
She has further sought directions from the ECI to accept a wide range of documents for voter verification. These include Aadhaar, permanent residence certificates, panchayat residence certificates, family registers, socio-economic caste census data, land or house allotment certificates, and other documents issued by competent state authorities.
As per the cause list published on the website of the Top Court, a Bench headed by the Chief Justice of India, Justice Surya Kant, and comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi, is slated to hear a batch of petitions challenging the validity of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) being conducted in West Bengal on February 4.
In her main petition, she has questioned the legality of the SIR exercise and accused the ECI of acting with political bias and adopting an authoritarian approach.
She has contended that the manner in which the revision is being carried out could lead to the disenfranchisement of lakhs of voters, particularly from marginalised sections of society.
The West Bengal Chief Minister has described the conduct of the poll body as “extremely worrying for any democratic society” and has sought the Supreme Court’s direct intervention to safeguard the constitutional right to vote and the integrity of the electoral process.
Earlier, Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha member Mahua Moitra and Rajya Sabha MPs Derek O’Brien and Dola Sen had approached the Apex Court on behalf of the ruling party, challenging the SIR exercise in West Bengal. Those petitions are also listed before the CJI Kant-led Bench for hearing on Tuesday.
The development assumes significance as CM Mamata had met Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at the ECI headquarters in New Delhi on Monday to raise objections over the SIR exercise.
Following the meeting, the Chief Minister levelled sharp allegations against the CEC, describing him as “arrogant” and accusing him of targeting West Bengal at the behest of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
She had also alleged large-scale deletion of genuine voters’ names from the draft electoral rolls and claimed that special electoral roll observers and micro-observers had been appointed exclusively for West Bengal to supervise the revision process.
The ECI, however, has rejected the allegations, with sources in the poll body stating that the CEC made it clear during the meeting that the rule of law must prevail and that any obstruction, pressure or interference in the SIR exercise would not be tolerated.
The poll body has also flagged instances of alleged threats and vandalism involving electoral officials during the ongoing revision.
